While it's not official yet, it sounds like Nancy Tong is set to win a post as Democratic district leader of the 47th Assembly District - which would make her the first Asian American elected official in Brooklyn - and she's getting a lot of love from the local community:

Many community leaders attended the event, including Steve Chung, president of the United Chinese Association of Brooklyn, Warren Chan, president of the Asian Community United Society, Louie Liu, vice president of the Brooklyn Community Improvement Association, John Chan, chairman of Brooklyn Asian Communities Empowerment and its president, Jianghua Li, and community activist Tim Law. They all said Tong’s election will be a milestone for the Chinese community in Brooklyn. It is a sign of the growing power of Chinese on the political stage. They also hope Tong’s experience can encourage more Asians to participate in politics so that the community will have a louder voice.

It's not really a surprise that Ted Nugent gets a show cancelled at a Native American run Casino:

“The First Amendment gives people the right to free speech, but I think racism is intolerable and not acceptable here,” Puyallup Tribal Council Vice President Lawrence LaPointe told the affiliate. “We’ve been getting lots of complaints from the community and other organizations. I don’t want to take away his right to say what he wants to say but we don’t need it here.”

Nugent replied calling the people pushing for the cancellation "unclean vermin".

Sure, I get that some people consider being able to wave the losing confederate flag on the doorstep as free speech, but having the DMV have to give them out?

Under the guise of free speech?

Fine.

Then I want a Texas issued license plate that has a bunch of dead confederates on it, with someone from the North standing on top of their dead carcasses burning the confederate flag (with an image of the American flag proudly in the background).

The Armed With a Camera Fellowship for Emerging Media Artists is for up-and-coming Asian Pacific Americans who have had some experience in filmmaking. Over a seven-month period, 10 selected Fellows will receive the support and resources needed to each create a five-minute film and premiere it at the LA Asian Pacific Film Festival. Resources include training, workshops, mentoring, and a cash stipend. Over the past 12 years, the Fellowship has helped nearly 100 filmmakers to launch their careers.

The deadline to apply this year is August 29.

Where can I find more information?
You can find more information on our website at www.vconline.org and click on Programs and Artist Services.

Who should I contact for more information?
You can e-mail Milton at Milton@vconline.org for more information.

Who can submit?
Applicants must be of Asian Pacific descent and residents of Southern California. If accepted, Fellows must be able to attend mandatory meetings and workshops in Los Angeles. Women, South Asian and Southeast Asian filmmakers are highly encouraged to apply to the AWC Fellowship.

How many applicants will be accepted?
Visual Communications will reward the fellowship up to 10 applicants.

When will we hear back?
Rewarded applicants will hear back in mid September.

How long is the fellowship?
The fellowship will span seven months in total, beginning October 2014. Final projects should be completed by March 13, 2015.

What kind of filmmaker/work is VC looking for?
Up to ten artists will be selected based on their demonstrated commitment to the arts, production and exhibition experience, and the quality of their sample work. Consideration will be given to communities that have been underserved and underrepresented in the media arts. A review panel composed of community members, media artists, and curators will judge the work based on artistic innovation, feasibility within the timeline, and budget of their proposed projects.

Daivd sorry but hope you got over that "Vietnamese phase". I and including a couple of male friends had really bad experiences with a certain type of Vietnamese girls. Specially when it comes with Korean men, they fall for those certain type of girls and end up heartbroken and a changed man (in a bad way) yes those girls are pretty and develop nice features but some are cocky as FUCK and full of themselves. Each of my male friends were dating a vietnamese girl (the girls are not friends or know each other) but each one fought or broke up for stupid things. One started crying in public because the guy didn't have enough money to buy her boba tea. Another didn't like the gold necklace the guy bought for her for her birthday and throw it in the trash. Last one, always said "im cute right" and made weird trying-to-be-cute faces. -___- not saying all Vietnamese girls are like that, i know some really nice ones but there are these few that get on my nerves. Im not even Korean but i just cant stand to see a Korean guy with that type of Vietnamese girl﻿

Kaitlin Nguyen

Alright first of all, you can go ahead and say anything you want, but the stuff that you saying is freaking racist, I'm Vietnamese and that was rude. It doesn't matter if you say that not all us girls are like that , its still not right for u to say anything about us, so keep your mouth shut about all races. Take a good look at your race first and than say something.﻿

Please join us for the book launch and reading of Hei Kyong Kim's "The Translation of Han" on Friday, July 11th from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM at The Third Place Gallery in Minneapolis.

In addition to Hei Kyong Kim reading from her book, Sun Yung Shin, Eva Song Margolis, and Bao Phi will be reading to help celebrate Kim's first full length book of poetry and prose.

http://www.thetranslationofhan.com/

== About The Book ==

The Translation of Han (released June of 2014) is a collection of poetry and prose about the spiritual, psychological, personal and political aspects of historical and intergenerational trauma amongst a people; it explores issues of race, adoption, culture, gender, lateral oppression, violence, love, family, and grief and loss. It is argued that Han cannot be understood by others who are not raised within the culture, including adopted Koreans; however, Hei Kyong Kim argues that adoptees were born out of trauma, out of Han. This body of work reflects an immigrant experience that has too often been forgotten.

== About Hei Kyong Kim ==

Hei Kyong Kim, Psy.D., L.P., was adopted from Seoul, South Korea in 1975. By day she works as a psychologist and by night she writes poetry and prose. Her work can be found in numerous journals, anthologies, and media, including: Outsiders Within, Seeds from a Silent Tree, Paj Ntaub Voice, Journal of Asian American Renaissance, New Truths: Writing in the 21st Century by Korean Adoptees, Proceedings of the First International Korean Adoption Studies Research Symposium, MoonRoot, Adoption Today, Parenting as Adoptees, Asian American Press, and Gazillion Voices. In addition to her writing, she has spoken at conferences here and in South Korea.

== Praise For The Translation of Han ==

"The Translation of Han is an important, ambitious book full of risks and rewards. It reads like a museum: beautiful, compelling, and daring. This remarkable debut explores trauma, survival, kinship and family, and the essential fight for identity. Kim writes about difficult subject matter with grace and accuracy. She is the real deal. This book is an absolute treasure."

- Lee Herrick, author of Gardening Secrets of the Dead and This Many Miles from Desire

"Like a spirit guide, Hei Kyong Kim’s stunning debut leads us through overlapping worlds of family and identity, blood and body, language and food, eternally haunted by an unquenchable thirst for connection. As I read it, I felt lit with the glow of recognition and shook with pleasure at her bravura style. Whether measuring out intimate, lyric delight in the ‘tiny bird lips’ of her daughter or embellishing the sweeping narrative of her own birth, Kim’s is a voice in full command of its power. I would follow it anywhere."

From a strict media to representation POV, I get it, but I'm also a sucker for action/drama, and I like seeing someone like Sung Kang and the other POC cast in a good story a la Infernal Affairs and its remake The Departed. Does the story-line have some issues and do some of the characters lack depth? Sure, and I think they need to tighten up some of the timeline/back story issues too - but it's still a good watch.

From a tipping point of when it's okay to see actors of color in roles that aren't the hero or the savior, I think it's a personal choice. For all the casting and image issues you can talk about in relation to movies like The Godfather or Scarface - those are still American classics in that genre. What if Breaking Bad had a mainly Asian, Latino, Black or Native American cast?

What happens then?

I don't want to see actors of color in bad roles but sometimes it's a fine line between a stereotype and an archetype, and at least for now, I'm putting Gang Related in the latter.

The English debut of Bong Joon-ho, based on a French graphic novel with actors Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Go Ah-sung, Jamie Bell, Ewen Bremner, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton, Octavia Spencer, and Ed Harris - how can I not want to go see this? At least on the surface, it seems to have everything I hope for in movie trends - world literacy - and is the one and only cut of the film Bong intended for - because he didn't give in to Harvey Weinstein by cutting 20 minutes of film and putting in voice-overs at the beginning and end (and the eventual 8-10 theater release is now close to over 150 with a list on the film's website).

I'm hoping this becomes a mega-hit in the US if only to speak to the opposite of why Weinstein wanted it cut and voiced-over in the first place.

"In 2011 there were more than 1 million Asian American women living in poverty—an increase from less than 0.7 million in 1999. According to the American Community Survey, from 2002 to 2010 the number of Asian Americans living in poverty increased by 46 percent." - americanprogress.org

In the comics boom of the 1940s, a legend was born: the Green Turtle. He solved crimes and fought injustice just like the other comics characters. But this mysterious masked crusader was hiding something more than your run-of-the-mill secret identity... The Green Turtle was the first Asian American super hero.

The comic had a short run before lapsing into obscurity, but the acclaimed author of American Born Chinese, Gene Luen Yang, has finally revived this character in Shadow Hero, a new graphic novel that creates an origin story for the Green Turtle.

With artwork by Sonny Liew, this gorgeous, funny comics adventure for teens is a new spin on the long, rich tradition of American comics lore.

Here's a great article at PRI that also talks more about Chu Hing, who created The Green Turtle in 1944, and how Hing fought against the White Washing of his character by almost never showing his face.

The Board of Directors is searching for an Executive Director to lead a nationally recognized, Asian Pacific American media arts organization located in Los Angeles. Visual Communications is the presenter of the annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and the C3: Conference for Creative Content, and is one of the leading media arts centers in the country serving the Asian American creative media professional. Visual Communications is looking to hire an energetic, visionary leader to head this 44-year old organization. This high-profile position will lead the organization and the field of Asian Pacific American independent media during an exciting time of growth and creative innovation.

2008 Year In Review

If you're looking for the 2008 In Review Posts, the link list has been moved out, but you can still get to them all by following this link which pulls them up by label (they'll be in reverse so go to the oldest post to read them in order).

2007 In Review Posts

If you're looking for the 2007 In Review Posts, the link list has been moved out, but you can still get to them all by following this link which pulls them up by label (they'll be in reverse so go to the oldest post to read them in order).

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